Our gratuites not paid since premature retirement – 30 former Abia perm secs

A group of 30 retired permanent secretaries who were retired from the service of Abia State in October 2023 have cried out that their severance entitlements and gratuites have not been paid till date.

To this end, they have appealed to the state government to urgently pay their entitlements to enable their families survive the present economic hardship in the country.

The retirees who made the appeal on Thursday in Umuahia while addressing the media after one year of their retirement, said that their careers have been affected by a stigma resulting from their alleged premature retirement.

The 30 former permanent secretaries whose address was read by Nkwachukwu Agomo, alleged that they were prematurely retired by the state government in October 2023 by the present administration after their initial suspension from office.

According to Agomo, severance packages have not been paid to them till date, despite Governor Alex Otti’s instructions about the matter.

The retirees alleged that a good number of them still had some years left in service before they were prematurely and unceremoniously sent home in October 2023.

“All of us spent decades serving this state sacrificially for the welfare of the public, but our sudden and unceremonious retirement not only stripped us of our livelihoods but pinned a stigma on our career going forward.

“This has left us grappling with uncertainties regarding our future” the retired permanent secretaries bemoaned.

“We are only receiving pensions which don’t take us anywhere in the present economic situation and our families and other dependents are suffering,” they lamented.